Demi Lovato Says People Are Still Body-Shaming Her After She Stopped Dieting

In January, Demi Lovatoannounced on Twitter that she would stop dieting and "food shaming" herself. Five months later, she says she's happy with her decision, although she revealed that she's had to deal with more body-shaming in turn. “The reaction has been great. There are some people who body-shame me, and sometimes it’s difficult, but I say to myself, am I happy? And that’s the most important thing," the singer told People in a new interview. "And I want my fans to be happy too.”

In fact, her fans were a big factor in why she chose to announce her decision publicly, she told People. “It was important to me to share that with my followers because there are so many people in the world who feel pressured by society and the diet culture, and I feel like someone has to speak out and say that you don’t have to force yourself to lose weight, or to look a certain way,” Demi said.

In the interview, Demi spoke about how recovering from an eating disorder impacted her decision, which has led to her feeling "a lot more free." “I had been on a really strict, regimented diet for so many years, and it felt like I didn’t have a lot of freedom with food,” she told People. “It would cause me to overindulge whenever I did get the opportunity, and I just felt like it was an unhealthy behavior. I just thought to myself, Why am I doing this? I’d rather live in freedom from any eating disordered behaviors or thoughts, and so I decided to just let myself enjoy certain things without feeling guilt or shame.”

“Balance is so important, and it kind of represents my life today and where I’m at right now,” she added. “Moderation is key, and I work really hard, but it’s important to stay active and take time for yourself, and take that time off.”

Previously, Demi wrote about not giving in to the pressure to diet in a couple of powerful Twitter posts. "Feeling gross today at a photo shoot but I’m choosing to accept what I see because I love myself for who I am and your love and support gets me through moments like this. 🙏🏼 if you’re struggling as well, don’t forget.. if I can do it, you can too!" she told her fans on Twitter. "No longer depriving myself of treats (in moderation) and I’m not gonna lie, I put on a couple lbs since I’ve given up dieting BUT I’ve given up the chronic stress of what I eat because I don’t want to set that example for my fans. No more food shaming myself!!"